


Adventures In Unexpected Places

by afteriwake



Category: Doctor Who, St Trinian's (2007 2009)
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-07-05
Updated: 2012-10-31
Packaged: 2017-11-09 06:32:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/452390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afteriwake/pseuds/afteriwake
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After being sent to the worst school in the whole of England, Amy meets up with the man whose fault it is that she’s there, and things go vastly more differently than anyone expected.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I had originally started writing this for [scifibigbang](http://scifibigbang.livejournal.com) but my Wholock fic grew and was able to cover the wordcount, so I figured I would post what I had written now. This fic is partially inspired by a prompt [aaronlisa](http://aaronlisa.livejournal.com) for a crossover, where the Doctor meets up with his old friend Camilla. This goes AU in the middle of “The Eleventh Hour” for Doctor Who, and is set before the reboot movie for St. Trinian’s.

Her aunt hadn’t even had the decency to take her. At least she hadn’t had to go alone; when Aunt Sharon made the decree that she was going to send her off to St. Trinian’s, Mels had decided to go as well. “After all, can’t send my best mate off to the madhouse alone,” was what Mels had said. And the school’s reputation fit right up Mels’ alley, but Amy’s? Not so much.

The driver wouldn’t even take them to the front door, not even when Mels offered to double the fare, and then triple it. “Last time it was eggs, and they baked on. Took days to scrape them off,” he said, stopping just outside the grounds. So they hoofed it.

“I heard the place is full of hellions,” Amy said nervously. “Girls that can’t be controlled and all that.”

Mels made a scoffing sound. “They can’t be that bad. And besides, I’m tough, you’re tough. We’ll hold our own.”

“I hope you’re right.”

They were maybe a quarter mile up the drive when Mels stopped her. “We’re being watched,” she said, pointing up to a tree. Amy looked up and saw a girl with camouflage face paint and binoculars. “Oi, you there!”

The girl was so surprised she almost fell out of the tree. “Yeah?” she said warily, lowering her binoculars.

“Why are you spying on us, eh? We’re just new students.”

Her eyes went wide. “You’re the new students?” she said. “I thought you were trespassers.”

“No, we’re new here,” Amy said. “I’m Amelia Pond, and this is Melody Sinclair.”

The girl plucked something out of the bag she had round her shoulder. “Oy!” she said into the walkie talkie. “Do we let them pass?”

“You damn well _better_ let us pass,” Mels said loudly.

“You’re supposed to give ‘em hell,” came the reply from the walkie talkie.

“Toss that down here,” Mels said, dropping her stuff on the ground and going to the tree, and after a moment Amy did the same. “Amy here can climb that tree pretty fast, and we’ll just take it from you if you don’t. You may stay up in the tree, you may not.” The girl paused, and Amy got up to the trunk, grabbed the nearest branch and pulled herself up. The girl yelped, and then dropped the walkie talkie down to Mels. “Listen up, whoever you are. You won’t molest us as we get to the school. So any shenanigans you have planned, scrap them. Anything happens to me or Amy and I’ll unleash holy hell on your head.”

There was a long pause. “We’ll pass the word,” came the cowed reply as Amy dropped back down to the ground.

“We’ll be taking this with us,” Amy said. “What’s your name, anyway?”

“Jones. Kelly Jones. I’m a first year,” she said.

“Anything happens to us, you’re the first one we’re coming after,” Mels said, going back to her stuff.

“Have a nice day,” Amy added as she went back to hers. They gathered their belongings and started walking towards the school again. “You really think they’ll leave us alone?” she asked.

“The fact that we threatened them should give us safe passage till we get to the school. After that, we’re fair game. Just remember not to show any fear or weakness. We’re fresh meat to them.” She smiled at her friend. “We’ll just keep each other’s back, that’s all.” Then her smile faltered. “Just don’t talk about the Doctor.”

“I knew _that_ ,” Amy said, rolling her eyes. “What do you think got me sent here in the first place, Mels?”

“Maybe it will be a good thing, in the end,” she said. “If we can survive our last few years of school at this place, we can do anything.”

“Yeah,” she said with a sigh.

“What is it?” Mels asked, stopping.

“I hate to say it, but I miss…Rory,” she said thoughtfully, almost whispering his name. “It won’t be the same not having him around. It’s been the three of us, all through school. And he’s in Leadworth and we’re here.”

“There’s always holidays,” she pointed out. “I can pony up the money for you to go back and see him if your aunt won’t.”

“It’s not like he’s my _boyfriend_ ,” she said defensively. “He’s just a friend.”

“Sure,” Mels said. “I believe you.”

“Well, he _is_ ,” she replied.

“He’s head over heels for you. Has been since you were little. Probably had been since before I moved into town.”

“Rory? Really?” Amy said, her eyes wide.

“Honest to God,” Mels replied with a nod.

Amy reached over and punched her shoulder. “Why are you just telling me _now_ , Mels? Maybe I could have had a long distance boyfriend. It would have made me cool. Or feel cool, at any rate.”

“It’s not as though you’re an old maid,” Mels teased. “Write him a letter or something. Tell him you want to be long distance mates, see where it goes from there. There’s always end of year break. And Christmas.”

“Aunt Sharon doesn’t want me around,” Amy said glumly. “That’s why I’m here, remember?”

“Hey, you can always stay with me,” she said.

“If your parents don’t kill me for you coming here,” she said.

“Amy, hate to break it to you, but I was supposed to come here a year ago,” she said. “I had to behave in order to not go. Do you know how hard it is to behave in Leadworth? At least here I’ll be able to cut loose.” Then she nudged her friend. “We’ll make it work here, you’ll see. You and me, we’ll be large and in charge, you hear me?”

“How do you suppose we’ll make that happen?”

“Easy. I’ll beat everyone into submission and you put those looks and brains to work. We’ll be fine.” 

They chatted the rest of the way up, and made it to the main hall where a tall blonde woman was waiting. “Well, you must be the girls who put the scare into the first years. Welcome to St. Trinian’s. I’m Camilla Fritton, headmistress. Now, which of you is Amelia and which of you is Melody?”

“I’m Amelia,” Amy said.

“I find your aunt’s behavior in not seeing you here herself deplorable. We had matters to discuss,” she replied. “Nonetheless, we can arrange to take care of the business through other means. I see you got your uniforms, good. You’ll find our dress code is a little…lax. We’re all for individuality here.” She motioned for the girls to follow her, and they did. “Now normally we would house you with the rest of the girls but we’re a little short on beds, and two unexpected students two months after term started has caused us a bit of trouble in the sleeping arrangements. For now you will be bunking in the unused English classroom. We should have beds in the next week, after it’s seen if Rachelle and Rebecca decide to stay or if their parents send them off to military school in the States instead.”

“Excuse me, ma’am?” Mels asked.

“Yes, dear?” Camilla replied, turning around.

“What’s the policy on retaliation? In case the first years want to get on us for foiling their scheme?”

“Don’t get caught,” Camilla said with a smile. “Now then, let me introduce you to our Head Girl, Millicent Jameson.” They saw an attractive blonde lounging in a doorway. “She’d have been a Posh Totty but she had a few more brains than most of them, I’m afraid. Had to make her own way in this school, lovely girl, and she ended up Head Girl.”

“So these are the girls who stood up to the first years?” she asked with a melodic, almost sing-song voice.

“They are indeed.”

“Excellent,” she said with a smile. “I’m always encouraging people to give it to the first years. This crowd is especially rowdy. Let me continue the tour. Would you like to put your things away?”

“I’m not putting my stuff away until I’m sure no one’s coming after it,” Amy said, tightening her hold on her duffel bag.

“Tough _and_ smart,” Camilla murmured with a smile. “I think you two will do nicely here,” she added, raising her voice. “Carry on, Millicent.”

“Right,” Millicent said. “Now, if you two will follow me…” The tour went quickly, and the more Amelia saw of the school the more she dreaded attending it. She slipped away when they got to the art classroom and went towards where she assumed Camilla’s office was. She knocked lightly at the door, then waited a moment and put her ear to the door.

“What are you doing?” Mels whispered from behind her, and she jumped a bit.

“I don’t want to be here,” Amy whispered back. “I’m going to tell her to convince Aunt Sharon to let me come home.”

“Well, skulking at the door isn’t going to do it,” Mels said, opening the door.

“…and I’ve got to get back!” a man was saying. Amy looked at him, and he looked at her, and they both yelped in surprise. “Oh. Hello there. This isn’t what it looks like, I swear.”

“You!” Amy said, her eyes narrowing at the Doctor, still in his tattered shirt and pants.

He had a confused look on his face, and then when it hit him who this girl was both his eyes and mouth widened. “Amelia?” he asked cautiously.

“You promised you’d come back!” Amy yelled at the man in front of her. “I waited outside all night for you!”

“I take it you two know each other,” Camilla said with an arched eyebrow, taking a sip from her cup.

“This is the girl I was telling you about,” he replied. “Amelia Pond. But…how did you get big? I’ve only been gone five minutes.”

“Try five _years_ ,” Amelia growled. “Five years, four psychiatrists, and a _transfer_.”

“She’s one of our newest students,” Camilla said.

“That’s the Doctor?” Mels asked.

“Yeah, that’s the lying bloke who caused me all the trouble,” Amy said, crossing her arms and glaring at him. “You were supposed to come back that night and take me on an adventure!”

“And it’s only been five minutes!” the Doctor exclaimed. 

“ _Five years_ ,” Amy said, getting closer.

“I believe you owe her an adventure,” Camilla said.

“Yeah. She waited!” Mels said.

“It’s still not quite right,” he replied. “It just crash-landed in Camilla’s office by mistake. See?” He pointed to where there had been a desk, and she saw the blue police box sitting on it. “It’s not safe enough to take you girls anywhere.”

“Where did you girls get—“ Millicent said from outside. “Oh!” she replied when she saw what was going on. “What on _Earth_ is going on here?”

“Business,” Camilla said, waving her hand. “Why don’t you leave the girls here? This business concerns them.”

“All right then,” Millicent replied, shutting the door behind her.

“Well then,” Camilla said. “What do you need to fix your TARDIS so you can take young Miss Amelia on the adventure you owe her?”

“Parts from your garage,” he replied.

“I’m afraid I can’t let you get them yourself,” Camilla said, standing up. “Write out what you need and I shall go get them for you.” He dashed into the TARDIS, and emerged with three pieces of machinery. “I shall be back in a jiff. You should work this out before anyone else interrupts.” And with that, Camilla left.

“I swear, it was only five minutes ago that I left you,” he explained to Amy.

“And how do I know you’re not lying?” she asked.

He produced the apple she had carved for him and tossed it to her. She caught it, and ran her fingers over it. “You just did that less than a half hour ago. See? It isn’t even brown yet.”

She looked at it, her eyes widening, and then she smiled. “You _aren’t_ lying!”

“I wouldn’t lie to you, Amelia,” he said. “And who is your friend?”

“Melody,” Mels said, going over to him. “You don’t look a lot like her drawings. You look _much_ more delicious.”

“Mels,” Amy said, rolling her eyes. “She and Rory are the only people who believe me when I say you exist. Everyone else thinks I’m a bit daft,” she added, circling her finger around her ear. “But you’re real! You’re really real!”

“And as soon as I get the TARDIS fixed I’ll take you on an adventure,” he said. “You’ll be good here. I know the school has a reputation, but Camilla loves every girl here and she’ll make sure you come to no harm.”

“But she can’t protect us from the girls all the time,” Mels pointed out.

“But she won’t need to,” the Doctor replied. “I’ll make sure you stay safe. I answer calls. Not always right on time, but soon enough. Camilla has the number.”

“Can I go on the adventure?” Mels asked slowly.

“Yeah, can she?”

“I don’t see why not,” he replied. The two girls gave each other high fives. “As soon as I get the old girl fixed, I’ll pick you up tonight on the roof. I’m sure two enterprising young girls can find your way up there. What year is it?”

“2001,” Amy replied. “Five years, remember?”

“Five years, right, right,” he said with a nod. “Tonight, on the roof, at seven.”

“Seven it is. And if you’re not there we’ll beat you up,” Amy said.

“Then I’ll definitely not be late,” he replied. “So, what all has happened in five years?”

The three of them chatted until Camilla brought back the needed supplies. The Doctor took them, thanked her, told her about the promise for that evening and took off. Amy watched the TARDIS dematerialize and turned to Camilla. “How do you know him?”

“He’s a friend of the family,” she said. “So long as a Fritton has run this academy, he’s been there. My mother, bless her, introduced us when I was but a child. He looked different then, and has changed many times since I’ve known him, but he’s still the same man. A bit daft at times, but solid as a rock.” She smiled at them. “Now. Why don’t you get settled in? I will let it be known, through my own sources, that you two are to be…untouched…by those with more power than you.”

“Won’t that just make us bigger targets?”

“Not when I’m done,” she said. “Now go on. You still have classes to attend.”

The two girls picked up their things and stepped out into the hallway, talking excitedly. They stashed their things and made their way to what their first class was supposed to be. It was hard to get through the day, but the other girls left them alone. Kelly had come up to them at dinner and asked if they _really_ knew The Doctor, like it was some rare thing. When Amy said she did, she squealed with delight and asked to know all the details. Other girls came around, and Amy told them the story of how he had crashed into her shed five years ago.

It seemed as though the girls in the school knew of him, and if he asked to meet you it was a real honor. All the Head Girls got one adventure with him, right before graduation. It was tradition. And they were getting an adventure on their first day! Everyone made them promise to tell them all about it, and the girls were accepted, just like that.

As seven o’clock neared, Amy and Mels made their way to the roof. Millicent went with them, just to be sure they were okay, and then left them alone as the clock struck seven. And then it appeared, the blue police box, and out stepped the Doctor, dressed all differently. He was wearing a tweed jacket, a white shirt, brown pants, suspenders and a bow tie. “You look odd,” Amy said.

“Not nearly as delicious as before,” Mels said.

“Well, you’re too young to be having those kinds of thoughts,” he said. “So I traveled a little forward in time, took care of a problem in Leadworth, checked on a few things…and made it back here at seven on the nose.” He grinned at them and they grinned back. “Now, then. Would you like to see my home?”

“Yes!” they said simultaneously. He moved to the side and motioned for them to come in. They went inside and both of their eyes went wide. “It’s bigger,” Mels breathed.

“Of course it is,” Amy said, rolling her eyes and scoffing slightly. “How else would a swimming pool fit in the library?”

“Well, girls,” he said, and they turned to him. “All of time and space, everywhere and anywhere, every star that ever was. Where do you want to start?"

They looked at each other. “The future!” they chorused.

“The future it is, then!” he said, going to the controls. “Girls, hold on tight. 2012, here we come!”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a shout-out to my other favorite sci-fi show in here. Hope you guys can find it!

The months rolled by. They had arrived in October, and helped participate in their very own Devil’s Night against the local town (most of the town occupants had sensibly left the town unoccupied) two weeks after arriving. Then they had the most unusual fall festival ever, but one that was much preferable to being in Leadworth and having to participate in the treacly pageant the town put on.

Christmas was a bit of a problem: Mel’s parents decided they wanted Mels home, but Aunt Sharon made no move to invite Amy back. But the Doctor had the fix for that, and she spent Christmas Eve on the TARDIS, waking up Christmas Day and unwrapping gifts from all over the galaxy, while the Doctor took to the fez she had picked out on Camilla’s advice like a duck takes to water. He’d also enjoyed the blue bow tie she’d picked out, and Amy swore for the next major gift-giving holiday to give him a green one. When the New Year dawned a week later, Amy and the Doctor were setting off fireworks from the roof of St. Trinian’s, along with Camilla and the other students who hadn’t left the property, for one reason or another.

By the time Valentine’s Day got close, Amy was completely at home in her new school. Yes, the lessons were spotty, and she spent more time being a hooligan then her aunt had probably intended, but she was getting a good education from the Doctor, who was taking her to any point in history she wanted to go on their monthly visits, and was teaching her science and English through the most inventive way possible. Her visit to Shakespeare had been her favorite; and she had gotten to see a rousing performance of “A Midsummer’s Night Dream” in full period clothing.

Mels came when she wanted, but Mels fit in with their classmates more, and after almost getting sucked into a black hole on the first visit she wasn’t as enthused for the trips as her friend was. Mels had made a friend in Kelly Jones, who was learning to be more and more like Mels. It was unusual to see Mels with a friend other than her, and saddening, in a way. But the Doctor more than made up for it.

“What do you want to do this month?” he asked when he picked her up in February for their scheduled visit.

“I want to have a boyfriend,” she said. “There’s supposed to be a boy in Leadworth who likes me. Rory Williams.”

“Oh, he loves you all right,” the Doctor said quietly.

“What?” she asked.

“Nothing, nothing,” he said. While he had taken her to the future, he didn’t take her to _her_ future, and he knew bits and pieces of it. Rory played a prominent part, he remembered that much. “Would you like to visit him?”

“Yes,” she said with a grin, and he piloted the controls to take them to Leadworth. “What day is it?”

“Still February 1st,” he replied, opening the door to the TARDIS. “He should be coming right up the lane…now.”

“Oi! Rory!” Amy stuck her head out of the TARDIS and yelled at her old friend.

“Amy!” he called back, running up to the box. He stuck his head in, his eyes wide, and then saw the Doctor. “He’s real? It’s all real?”

“Of _course_ it’s all real,” she said, rolling her eyes. She grabbed his arm and pulled him in, and then shut the door behind him. “Don’t worry, he’ll bring you right back.”

“My mum saw one of your letters and said you were still crazy little Amelia,” he said, going up to the console in wonder. “If she only knew.”

“Yeah, well, she can’t,” Amy said. “Anyway, Rory, this is the Doctor. Doctor, this is Rory Williams.”

“How do you do?” the Doctor said, extending his hand to the young man.

“Good,” Rory said, shaking it. “You?”

“Very good,” he replied. “So, does our intrepid new friend get to pick where we go?”

“Of course not,” Amy said. “You already know where you want to take us, don’t you?”

“Ooh, sometimes you’re too clever,’ he replied, ruffling Amy’s hair. She ducked away and fixed it, getting close to Rory. Then she noticed how close she was and took a large step to the side. “I was thinking…Venice.”

“What’s so interesting about Venice?” Amy asked, making a face.

“Gondolas!” the Doctor replied. The two teenagers looked at him, blank faced. “All right then. 1940s is out, your own personal future is out…ancient Rome? Stonehenge? London 2012 Olympic—oh, wait, I’ve already been there, shouldn’t cross my own timeline. Beijing Olympics in 2010? Does any of that sound at all interesting?”

“You know, I’d like to have a picnic somewhere exotic,” Amy said. “Can we do a picnic?”

“Yeah. I didn’t eat lunch today,” Rory said.

“Picnic, right then. I can go whip something up. How about…Atrellion 5? They have a breathable atmosphere, and the sky is rainbow hued, and there are all sorts of nifty ruins to explore.”

“That sounds good,” Rory said, looking at Amy.

“Sounds good to me,” Amy said with a nod.

“I’ll go get the food,” he said as he threw down controls. “Unless you’d like to raid the pantry, Amelia, since you know where everything is.”

“What kind of food do you have?” Rory asked.

“He’s got all sorts. Even American food,” she said, walking towards the kitchen, with Rory following. “He’s got these chocolate chip cookies that are to die for. Pepperidge Farm?” The two adolescents disappeared out of the console room, and he pulled up the data he had from their future and frowned. Today was supposed to be their first date. But how…oh. He had to come up with a reason to be scarce. This would not be a good thing to mess up. He landed the TARDIS and waited patiently for them to come back.

“And you can see dinosaurs, though they’re really boring and they smell bad,” Amy was saying as they came back.

“Well, I need to drop you two off for an hour or so. Got a message from my friend River. Terrible emergency, needed right away.” He opened the door and practically shoved them outside. “Don’t stray far, I’ll be back in two hours, three at most.” He shut the door behind them and dematerialized, rematerializing about 100 yards away under silence. He wasn’t so irresponsible he’d leave the two of them on the planet _alone_. He turned on the monitor and focused in on them.

“That was rude,” Amy said, glaring at where the TARDIS had been. “And it’s supposed to be my day with him, too.”

“Then why’d you come get me?” Rory asked, hefting the heavy picnic blanket.

“Cause I missed you,” she said quietly. “Mels and I see each other almost every day, and I didn’t come back for Christmas, and I…missed you,” she said, ending it with a shrug. She switched arms to hold the blanket and punched him in the shoulder awkwardly. “Let’s go find a place to eat, okay?”

They trudged off about ten feet until they found the ruins of a fort. Amy laid down the blanket in one corner of the ruins, then settled on it as Rory set down the basket. “Nice view,” he said when he sat down.

“Yeah,” she said. She reached into the basket the same time that he did, and their hands brushed. She pulled hers back really fast. “Could you get me one of my sandwiches?”

“Sure,” he said, pulling one out. “This place is really cool.”

“Yeah, it is,” she said, taking a bite of her sandwich. “So, what happened since the last time we talked?”

“Not much. Marcy has a boyfriend now, and Greg got sent to the headmaster’s office for assault. And Jennifer asked me out, but I said no.”

“Oh,” she said quietly.

“What about you?”

“Oh, not much. Mels has gotten it in her head that we can become criminal masterminds, so she recruited this guy in one of the other villages to help us out.”

“Sounds like Mels,” Rory said with a slight chuckle.

“And I hang out with the Doctor once a month. He won’t take me on as a companion until after I graduate, so I get a few hours once a month until then.”

“Sounds like your life is better than mine,” he said glumly. “Mine’s so boring since you left.”

“I’m sorry. Maybe I can bring you on my trips with the Doctor?” she suggested.

“Really?” he said.

“Yeah,” she replied. “Mels almost got sucked down a black hole so she doesn’t like them as much anymore, unless we go to the past, then she wants to come. And I like him, but I get a little lonely sometimes.”

“I’d love to go with you. Wherever or whenever you go,” Rory said earnestly.

“Kind of like my…boyfriend?” she suggested, blushing slightly.

“Are you asking me out?” he asked, also turning a slight shade of pink.

“Yeah? Yeah. Yeah, I’m asking you out.”

“Okay. Yeah. I’ll be your boyfriend.”

“Really?” she asked, surprised.

“Why do you think I said no to Jennifer? I don’t like her like I like you.”

“That’s sweet,” Amy said with a smile. “You were my first choice when I decided I wanted to have a boyfriend. Mels said you might like me, so I figured it would be good to at least see. And you do, so it’s good.”

“Do I have to…kiss…you?” he asked.

“Well, that’s what boyfriends do,” she said.

“Oh. Okay.”

“But not now, because we’re eating. Afterwards you can kiss me. I mean, you can kiss me good-bye. I mean, good-night.”

“Oh. Okay.” He ate more of his sandwich, and she ate hers, and they stayed relatively quiet. When he was done he reached in for a soda, and handed her one. “Do I get to put my arm around your shoulders?”

“Not today. Next time…maybe.” She took a big drink of soda. “So, what do you want to do when the Doctor comes back?”

Whatever he had planned to say was drowned out by a roar. Both of them froze, and then Rory slowly set down his soda and looked around, picking up a rock about the size of his palm. He stood in front of Amy and the food, ready to protect her. Amy, thinking just as fast, stood up and grabbed a stick from inside the ruins and stood by his side. “I’m protecting you!” he said.

“Well, then take the stick and give me the rock!” she said as the roar sounded again.

He started to say something else when the TARDIS materialized in front of them. “Quick in, in, before the Yerdhel cub’s mother finds him,” the Doctor said from the open doorway. Rory grabbed the basket and Amy grabbed the blanket and they bolted into the control room. “Forgot about the wildlife here,” he said sheepishly.

“I thought you were busy,” Amy said, narrowing her eyes at him.

“I finished my business but you two seemed chummy so I didn’t want to intrude.”

“Make sense,” Rory said, setting the basket down on the floor.

“So you say,” Amy said, a little suspiciously. Then she sighed. “Well, now what?”

“How about we go watch a race?”

“A race?” Amy said, putting her hands on her hips.

“In space. There’s a community in America that does an annual race to the moon, or to Mars, can’t quite remember. We can watch them in space.”

“That _could_ be interesting,” Rory said.

“Sure, why not?” Amy said with a shrug.

“Excellent. I’ll take you to the race in 2010. That one was spectacular.” He went to the console, then paused. “Rory, you take the doohickey. Amy, you take the wibbly lever.” The teens went where he pointed. “Ready, then?”

“Ready,” they chorused. “Then let’s go!” They did what they were supposed to do, and then the Doctor opened the door. “Right they should be coming by us any moment.”

“Uh, Doctor?” Rory said from next to him. “I think that one in front is coming straight at us.”

“Right you are,” he replied, then he raced back to the controls. He fiddled with a lever, and while the door was open they moved to the side, out of the rocket’s path. “Better?”

“Better,” Rory said, his eyes glued on the rockets. Amy watched for a moment, then came back to the console.

“Aren’t you going to watch the rockets?” the Doctor asked as he headed back towards Rory.

“No,” she said. “It’s boring.”

“One of them is doing something fishy,” Rory said, looking back.

“2010…oh, bugger,” the Doctor murmured. “Rory shut the door. Amy, to the wibbly lever again.” He flipped controls “Now, Amy.” Amy turned the wibbly lever and the whole TARDIS lurched. “Forgot what happened in 2010,” he said sheepishly.

“Can we just go home?” Amy said.

“Home?” Rory said. “But…we didn’t get to do much.”

“Yeah, but at home I can talk to you without worrying about being eaten or blown to bits,” she said.

“Ah,” the Doctor replied. “Tell you what. Why don’t you show him around? I’ll just go to my study and…do stuff. Study. Something or other. You two can talk to your hearts content.”

“Okay,” Amy said. “Mind if we spend some time in the pool?”

“Sure, all right.” Then he paused. “But no monkey business. Don’t need either of you drowning…or worse.”

“Got it,” she said. She grabbed Rory’s hand and pulled him along. “Come on, Rory.”

The Doctor watched them walk away, amused grin on his face, as he went to his own room. He puttered around for two hours before checking up on them, finding them out of the pool and in the library, all dried off and looking at the things in there. “Not as bored.”

“There’s so much fascinating stuff,” Amy said. “I’m glad the swimming pool isn’t in here anymore.”

“I rather am too,” the Doctor replied. He then nodded to Amy. “We should probably go soon.”

“Oh, right.” She grinned at Rory. “Next month, we’ll do something you want.”

“Promise?”

She leaned over and quickly kissed his cheek. “Promise.”

They all headed back to the control room, and the Doctor landed Rory right where they’d picked him up. Amy walked outside with him, and when she came back in five minutes later the Doctor could have sworn it looked like she was floating. “Well?”

“He’s going to try and come visit on Valentine’s Day,” she said, a dreamy smile on her face.

“At your school?”

“Yeah,” she said.

“Won’t your classmates tear him to shreds?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

The dreamy look on her face disappeared. “Oh, damn.”

“Leave it up to me,” he said gently. “I’ll make sure you get to see your sweetheart on Valentine’s Day.”

“Thank you,” she said, relieved. “So…home now?”

“Home it is,” he replied, fiddling with the knobs and levers before landing on the roof of St. Trinian’s. “Oh, by the way…tell Mels that unless the man she’s talking to is Fast Harry, it’ll all fall apart around her ears.”

“Right.” She was almost to the door, then paused. “How did you know?”

“I looked into the future,” he said, mentally slapping himself for not catching it earlier. “It wasn’t like I was spying or anything.”

“ _Right_ ,” she said, an amused grin on her face. “Well, see you on Valentine’s Day, Doctor.”

“See you then,” he replied as she left and shut the door behind her. He went back to the console and checked the record, and was pleased to find everything the same. And, most of all, he was happy for Amy and Rory. He knew there were some hard times coming, and she would be grateful for his support.


	3. Chapter 3

Valentine’s Day went well. The girls at school had had a blow-out party while Amy and Rory went to New York City to sightsee with the Doctor. It wasn’t as though he was really chaperoning them, but was there with his sonic if they needed it. They went to a museum of art and then a concert of Amy’s favorite band. Rory didn’t set foot on the school grounds at all, and the next day she acted as though everything was normal and not that she’d had the best first date ever.

But her life went back to normal. Mels had found the person the Doctor suggested, and they were hatching up all sorts of schemes, and Amy watched on with amusement. It was clear that Mels really was a criminal mastermind, and while it was nice to see her excel Amy also hoped she knew when to get out before it was too late.

Winter ended and spring arrived, and soon it was time for Easter break. Rory’s parents had accepted that their son was in a long distance relationship with Amelia and invited her to stay with them, and Mels had gotten her parents to offer the same, but Aunt Sharon had finally decided that maybe she should see how her niece was, so she was going home for the break.

Home…it seemed strange to her, but now St. Trinian’s was home, and the only thing Leadworth had to offer was Rory. It would be very strange to be back for two weeks, but the Doctor had promised he would try and visit, make things a bit lively, and she knew she could trust him to do just that. As she set her duffel bag on the floor of her old room she looked around. Aunt Sharon had come in to dust, but everything had been left more or less as she had left it. It saddened her a bit, to think that her aunt missed her so little that she hadn’t spent time among her old things.

Their first dinner together was awkward. There was so much going on that Amy simply couldn’t tell her about, like the trips with the Doctor or Mels zany schemes or the times she actually got to see her boyfriend out of the blue. So she stuck to the simple stuff, and Aunt Sharon tried to fill in the gaps with what had been going on since she had left. It was with relief that Amy went outside to the old swing set that was still standing back there, and sat down on the swing.

It was times like today she wondered what had happened to her parents. She had bare memories of them, but nothing concrete. She remembered her mum was thin, and her dad was on the fat side. She remembered hazy smiles, but that was it. There were no pictures of them around the house, and when asked her Aunt Sharon always changed the subject, as if she didn’t want to talk about them, and didn’t want her talking about them, either. Would her parents have sent her to St. Trinian’s? Would they have just believed her about what she knew now was the truth, that he was real and that she could travel through time and space when she was with them? Or would it be exactly the same as it was now?

The familiar vworp-vworp-vworp of the TARDIS materializing got her attention, shaking off the melancholy thoughts. Sometimes, she swore, she just had to think and her Doctor would make himself known. The doors swung open and she jumped off the seat and ran in, throwing her arms around the surprised man’s chest. “It’s only been three weeks, Pond,” he replied, still giving her a hug.

“It’s like you just know when I need you,” she said, letting go.

“But haven’t you figured out yet that I do?” he said, grinning at her. She grinned back, and he clapped his hands together. “So! What do you want to do today?”

“I want to see my mum and dad,” she replied.

He frowned. “I’m afraid that’s not possible, Amelia.”

“Why not? We can go in the past, right?” She walked over to the console. “Shouldn’t be hard.”

“Amelia,” he said quietly. “I have looked. God knows, I have looked. And I simply can’t find them. They’ve never existed.”

“Then how am I here?” she asked, confused.

“I don’t know, but I have a theory.” He looked at her, then moved her towards the chair near the console. She sat down and looked up at him. “The crack in your wall…I’ve seen others like it, all over the universe. I watched someone touch it, then disappear in a bright light, and then no one remembered him. There was no record of him. I think, perhaps, that your parents…the same thing may have happened to them.”

The crack. It still gave her nightmares, even now that it was sealed. And to think that it swallowed up her parents… “I don’t understand,” she said.

“I don’t either, not entirely, but I’m doing everything I can to figure it out. I promise, if I can bring your parents back I will.” He knelt down in front of her and grasped her hands in his, squeezing. She looked him full on in the face, knowing he was being earnest and truthful. But…she liked her life as it was now. How drastically would it all change if her parents were back? Would she still have Mels as a friend? Rory as a boyfriend? Would she still go to St. Trinian’s? Most of all, would she still have met the Doctor and had the wonderful, brilliant maddening adventures she’d had with them.

“I don’t want things to change,” she said, shaking her head.

“But if it would fix things, it’s what I should do,” he said.

She pulled her hands away and stood up. “No. I like this life. I have a home, I have friends, I feel like I belong somewhere. If you bring them back, what happens then? Do I lose all this? Does it never take place, and I’m different? I don’t want to be different.”

“But maybe it will be better,” he replied.

“And maybe it won’t!” she said. She could feel tears slipping down her cheeks. He didn’t care if it hurt her, he was going to do it anyway. He was her _friend_ , and he was going to hurt her. “Maybe everything will be horrible! Maybe Mels will never come to Leaadworth and Rory won’t like me and I’ll never meet you and I’ll be boring and ordinary and I won’t…I won’t…” She couldn’t get anymore out.

He came up to her and wrapped his arms around her. She pounded at his chest slightly, but he didn’t let go. “I can’t imagine to know how you feel, Amelia,” he said quietly. “But if this is a mistake, if this is something I can fix, then I must fix it.”

She stopped fighting and instead cried, her face buried in his shirt until there were no more tears left. She pulled away, wiping her still moist eyes with the back of her hand. She looked at him closely, and knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that he was going to do this. She had no say in it. She turned around so she wouldn’t have to look at him. “Please don’t come back for me.”

“Amelia…” he said quietly.

“If it all changes, don’t come into my life, okay? Just leave me be.” She started walking to the door. Her life was going to change. Someday, she was going to wake up and it would be different. And she had the gut feeling only she would remember. And she would be looked at as the weird little girl in Leadworth who talked of things no one else could understand all over again.

“I’ve seen your future. Your correct future,” he called out as she had her hand on the handle. “Do you want to know what happens? I hadn’t planned on telling you. I perhaps would have, later, when you were older.”

She lowered her hand and turned around. “Tell me.”

“I show up again when you’re nineteen, not twelve. We save the world from Prisoner Zero, and then I disappear again for two years. I come back the night before you marry Rory, and you run away with me. Then you try and kiss me, and it’s a mess, so I go pick up Rory, and…he dies. But he comes back, and then you die, and then we seal you up and wait nearly two thousand years for you to wake up. But the universe stopped existing, and an exploding TARDIS is the only thing warming the Earth. But then I fix things, and disappear, but you bring me back. But you also bring back your parents, and you seem happy when I drop in on your and Rory’s wedding.”

She stumbles a bit at the weight of the information. That’s what’s supposed to happen to her? That’s her life? A life of waiting, to be replaced with a life with her parents? “And what happens to this life?” she asked.

“It’s like the others. You remember it in your head. Rory will probably remember it, too, with enough prompting,” he said as he walked towards her. “But the life with your parents…you seem better in that life. More fulfilled. Happier.”

“But I wouldn’t see you again until I was twenty-one,” she said. “And Rory is going to die? And I’m going to die?”

“But you come back,” he said. “Of course, that life may never happen. After all, it’s nine more years until my enemies set the trap. And I know about it now.”

“How did you find out about it?” she aasked.

“My friend River, I’ve mentioned her before?” She nodded. “She’s a time traveler, going in the wrong order. The first time I meet her is the last time she sees me. She got a hold of me not long after I met you in Camilla’s office. She has a book where she records her adventures, and said suddenly she was remembering different events then were in her book. We had a long talk and that’s when I got the gist of everything that changed.”

“I had no idea,” she said quietly.

“And I didn’t want to tell you until you were older, until I learned more. No one should know more of their own future than absolutely necessary, especially in your case where it’s so drastic of a change. Even my records have you with a different future then the one I just told you. About the only thing that remains the same is that you have Rory to help guide you through things.”

“Should you tell him?” she asked.

“Yes, perhaps I should,” he replied. “It wouldn’t be good for you to have to keep such a heavy burden to yourself, and he would understand.”

“What about Mels?”

He paused. “The less she knows, the better,” he said after a moment. “Her future is…complicated. And the less you know of it, the better. I already made a hash of things, and it may turn out differently in the long run anyway.”

“I don’t like keeping secrets.”

“Let’s just say she’s got one of her own and leave it at that, shall we?” He put a hand on each shoulder and looked at her intently. “Should we go find Rory?”

“Yeah, probably,” she said with a sigh, looking down.

“Amelia.” She looked back up. “Before I go fix this problem, if I can fix it at all, I will tell you. I will have you be as prepared as I can for the changes that are going to come, whatever they might be. I will not leave you to face it all alone.”

“Okay,” she said. “Let’s go get Rory.”

“All right then. Off to go fetch Rory.” He put an arm around her shoulders and guided her to the console. A small but heavy weight was lifted from her shoulders. At least she would have warning. At least she could prepare herself. Or at least _try_. But she knew at the core of her being that things would never be the same again.


	4. Chapter 4

The rest of the school year came and passed in the blink of an eye, it seemed. Even knowing that the life she was living now wasn’t the life she was supposed to live, and knowing one day it might suddenly be different, she continued on. The Doctor increased his visits to once a week, and then twice a week, always bringing Rory along. Rory had taken it better than she had, once the Doctor told him they were still together in the other life. That seemed to be enough for him.

Soon it was summer and she was saying good-bye to St. Trinian’s for a summer in Leadworth. Mels hadn’t wanted to leave, because the schemes she made with Fast Harry were coming to fruition, and as she said, she didn’t want him to muck anything up while she was gone. It was with some reluctance that she left, but she threatened Fast Harry with bodily harm before she left. Apparently he was very scared of a thirteen-year-old girl, because he swore he’d keep everything in tip-top shape.

“It’s been an interesting year, hasn’t it?” Mels asked as they were on the bus on their way back to Leadworth.

“Yeah, it has,” Amy said with a nod. Mels didn’t know about the other timeline, or the changes the Doctor planned on making. She just hoped that she had more time because really, she did enjoy this life. “It’s going to be boring going back to Leadworth.”

“But Rory’s there. That’s got to make you happy, having the chance to see him every day for three months,” Mels teased, bumping her shoulder into Amy’s. “And besides, it’s not like your Aunt’s changed her mind. She’s gotten used to you not being there. Come next term, it’s back to St. Trinian’s for us.”

“I hope so.” Mels got a good look at her face and kept quiet for most of the ride back, which suited Amy just fine. They got off the bus in Leadworth to see Rory waiting for them. He greeted Amy with a kiss, which made her smile, and he said the adults were waiting at Mels’ home for dinner. When Amy asked about Aunt Sharon, he said he didn’t know, and that Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair probably did. Since Mels only lived a few blocks from the bus stop the three of them walked there, Rory being a gentleman and carrying both their backs, one on his back and one on his bike.

They made it to Mels home and her parents greeted them warmly, inviting Rory to stay for dinner as well. They said nothing about Aunt Sharon, and as the meal wore down Amy began to get impatient. Finally, as everyone was finishing desert, she spoke up. “When can I go home?” she asked.

“You aunt had to go out of town,” Mr. Sinclair said after a moment. “She’s in America for the next three weeks. She asked us to keep an eye on you for her.”

Amy couldn’t believe it. Her aunt had bought the bus ticket home. Surely she had remembered her niece was coming back? “I can’t believe she’s not here,” she said glumly.

“You know, Amy can stay at the place by herself, Mum, Dad,” Mels said. “If she gets scared she can just come over here. Please? She’s been gone from home since break and all she wants to do is sleep in her own bed tonight.”

The two adults looked at each other from across the table. “I suppose she won’t mind. But call us when you get there, and come over frequently,” Mr. Sinclair said.

Amy beamed at him. “Thank you.” She pushed her chair back from the table, and Rory did the same. They said their good-byes to Mels and her family and then made their way off towards Amy’s house. “I can’t believe she’s not here,” she said with a sigh when they were halfway to her home.

“She hasn’t spent a lot of time here since the spring,” Rory said. “I told you that.”

“I know, but to not be here when I got home? It’s further proof she doesn’t care about me.” She took another step forward before she realized Rory wasn’t following. She turned to look at him, and he reached over for her hand. “What?” she asked, holding it tightly.

“She’s looking to move away. I heard my parents talking about it one night a few weeks back. She wants to go to London, and keep you at the school the whole year round, and during the summer…I don’t know.”

“Leave Leadworth? Leave our home?” she said, surprised. Then she scowled. “Course she would. It’s a stupid town with stupid people and it’s all just a reminder of how much I made her life miserable.”

“I was going to try and talk my parents into letting you stay with us for the summer, and I know as soon as Mels finds out she’ll try and do the same. You’ll still get to see me. I mean, there’s the Doctor, right? I see you more than I’d ever thought I would now.”

“Yeah, but it’s not the same,” she said with a sigh. She took another step towards her home and this time he followed, still holding her hand with the hand he wasn’t using to guide his bike. “We should run away, just the three of us. We could make it out there.”

“Maybe the Doctor will take us now?” Rory suggested.

Amy beamed at him, then leaned over and kissed him. “That’s brilliant, Rory. Camilla gave me the number to call him. When we get to my place we’ll call him and we’ll ask him to take us away.” She let go of his hand and ran the rest of the way to her house, Rory keeping up as best he could. When they got to her home she took the key out of her pocket and let herself in, and dashed to the phone in the kitchen.

“Hopefully he picks up,” Rory said as he got to her, putting her duffel bag on the floor.

“Yeah, hopefully.”” She let it ring once, twice, three times, then four, and it went to a machine. “Doctor, Aunt Sharon isn’t in Leadworth and I’m home and she’s planning on moving away and Rory and I want to travel with you all the time, if it’s all right. We don’t want to stay where we’re at. So please, come pick us up and take us with you, all right?” She hung up and looked at him. “I guess now we wait. How late can you stay over?”

“Till ten, maybe.”

“Hopefully he’ll be here by then.” And then they heard the familiar _vworp-vworp-vworp_ that signaled the Doctor’s arrival. The two of them dashed outside and saw the TARDIS parked next to the swing set, and by the time they got to it the door was thrown open. “Doctor!  
Amy called out as they came into the console room.

“Amelia, Rory, good to see you,” he said with a grin.

“Doctor, please, let us travel with you all the time,” Amelia leaded as she threw her arms around his waist. “Please?” She heard another person clear their throat, and she pulled away from the Doctor to see a woman with frizzy blonde hair standing near the console. “Who are you?” she asked.

“I’m River Song,” she said with a warm smile. “I’ve heard so much about you.”

Rory looked from the Doctor to River and back to the Doctor. “Is that your girlfriend?”

The Doctor smiled slightly. “So she says,” he said with a nod. “Wife, actually. Timey-wimey wibbly-wobbly stuff. In that other future you two have, she gets me to marry her. We still consider each other husband and wife.”

“Oh,” Amy said, looking at River closely. “You don’t look like I’d thought you would look.”

“And just how did you think I would look?”

“Younger, like him,” Amy said, and the Doctor chuckled at that.

“I don’t look _that_ old, do I?” River asked, though she still had a slight smile on her face. “I should probably leave the three of you alone anyway. I believe you all have some things to talk about.” She came up to the Doctor and kissed his cheek. “Remember what I told you, sweetie, and be gentle.”

“Yes dear,” he said. She took a step back, pressed a few buttons on the device on her wrist, and then she was gone.

“What’s she talking about?” Amy asked.

“Well, my enemies are springing their trap a bit earlier than planned,” he said. “The Pandorica is lying in wait for me underneath Stonehenge. I started opening it, and then I left. River’s going off to check.”

“But then I die, and you have to wait two thousand years for me to get better,” Amy said.

“Well, the TARDIS isn’t exploding today, so I expect it won’t go quite according to their plans. But…it means I may not come back. We’ll see. I had planned on coming to see the both of you tonight anyway, and then I got your call. But I’m afraid I can’t take you with me. It’s too dangerous right now.”

“I understand,” Amy said with a sigh in a slightly bitter tone. “You’re going to leave me too. I see how it is. Everyone leaves.”

“Amelia,” he said quietly, placing both hands on her shoulders. She looked at his chest until he put a finger under her chin and tilted her head up. “We’re doing this for you, River and I. If it went the way it was supposed to before, you would lose this life but you’d have your parents back. I know how much you love this life, and I’m trying to help you keep it. You were able to bring me back the last time. I’m hoping it doesn’t come to that this time.”

“Oh,” she said. “I’m sorry.”  
“I want to tell you both something,” he replied. “River is more than just my wife. She’s a good friend, not just to me, but to both of you. In fact, it’s because of her that the two of you are together.”

“But it was Mels that got us together,” Rory said with a frown. “She’s the one who told Amy that I liked her, the first day they were at St. Trinian’s.”

“Exactly,” the Doctor said.

“So…Mels is River?” Amy said.

He nodded. “Yes.”

“How is that possible?” she asked.

“River, and by extension Mels, is special. She’s human, but she has Time Lord DNA. It means she can regenerate, just as I had done when you first met me, Amelia. And she has a very particular reason for making sure the two of you get together and stay together. You see, she’s your daughter, in the other timeline. She is in this one as well, but things go differently here. She’s kidnapped by different people, for one, and she’s not raised as a weapon here. But she needs to make sure the two of you stay together long enough to have her.”

“How come she’s part Time Lord?” Rory asked.

The Doctor blushed slightly. “When the two of you are old enough, you have your…first time…aboard the TARDIS, while it’s in flight.” Amy and Rory looked at each other and made a slight face. Kissing was one thing; _that_ was something else altogether. “You get to raise her for a few years, but then she’s kidnapped and you lose her. Meanwhile she regenerates in the past and she makes her way to Leadworth to be your friend and get you together. Then she’ll regenerate later into River and she comes into my life again.”

“That’s all so confusing. It’s making my head hurt,” Amy said, rubbing her temples slightly.

“I know. But she wanted me to tell you so that you know no matter what, you two keep hold of one another. And we’re hoping that if we spring this trap now I can get out of it easily enough, and then we can continue our adventures so you two can…you know…when you’re older.”

“That makes sense,” Rory said slowly, nodding. “Kind of.”

“So I can’t take you away now, and you two don’t travel with me full time for a few years yet. But no matter what, even if this fails, you two don’t lose each other. You have the kind of love that comes along once a century. Nothing can break that bond.”

“Oh,” Amy said.

“And now I need to go.” He offered Rory his hand, which Rory shook, and then he hugged Amelia tightly. “Hopefully it will all work out. I’ll try and come back as soon as possible, all right? If not…know that I care deeply about the both of you.” He let Amy go, and then he guided them out of the TARDIS. Amy and Rory waved as he shut the door, then watched as the TARDIS dematerialized and they were alone.

“I want it all to work out,” Rory said, holding her hand tightly.

“Yeah, me too,” she replied, squeezing it back. “Come on. If you can stay till ten, maybe we can watch some movies or something and relax. He’ll do fine. I have faith in him.”

“Yeah, I do too,” he said, giving her a smile. She smiled back and they went back inside the house. At least they would have each other, no matter what. That was something.


End file.
